Phoenix, AZ – The Arizona Green Party (AZGP) will hold its next state meeting on Saturday, May 30, 2015, 9 am to 5 pm, at the Raul H. Castro SBS Building, Room 110, Northern Arizona University, in Flagstaff. All registered Arizona Green Party voters are invited to attend. During this event, party members will also be celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the founding of AZGP (May 1990). Angel Torres, AZGP chairperson, stated “The past 25 years for AZGP have been exciting, and challenging. We achieved ballot status in 1992, 2000, 2008, 2010, 2012, and we will be on the ballot for the 2016 and 2018 Elections. I encourage our party members to join us in Flagstaff on May 30 to celebrate this milestone in our history!”

On May 30th, AZGP will also be honoring two of its founding members, Margaret and Edward Silk. The wife-husband duo served in many capacities at the county and state level for the Green Party in Arizona, and led the party during its first 14 years. The couple retired and moved to New Mexico in 2005. Maritza Broce, AZGP co-chair, stated, “We are grateful to Maggie and Ted for their vision in laying the foundation for our state Green Party. Their hard work and sacrifice made it possible for us to have a functioning political organization during our early years of existence.”

The keynote speaker for this meeting will be Dr. Kent Mesplay, Green Party-US presidential candidate for the 2016 Election (he also sought the party’s nomination in 2004, 2008 and 2012). Kent spent the first 10 years of his life in New Guinea, and moved with his family to California in 1977. He earned his PhD in Biomedical Engineering from Northwestern University, and currently works as an air quality inspector for the County of San Diego. Kent has been a registered Green Party voter in California for 20 years, and has been an active member of the party at the local, state and national level. Dr. Mesplay stated, “It is an honor to be speaking at the 25th Anniversary celebration of AZGP. Arizona Green Party members should be very proud of this achievement!”